‘Luckily, the passport didn’t arrive’… Raphinha reveals how close he was to playing for a different team | OneFootball

The FC Barcelona first team is already in Italy as they look to make their way to the final of the UEFA Champions League after winning in the second leg of the semi-final tie against Inter Milan.

Being the Catalan team’s most decisive player in the UCL, a lot of eyes will be centred on Raphinha on Tuesday, and Hansi Flick will be hoping he once again puts in a memorable shift in this game.

The Brazilian forward himself might be keen to prove a point in this game as he has a special association with the place where the second leg of this tie is to be played, i.e., Italy.

Raphinha could have played for Italy

This special association was revealed as he spoke in an interview and revealed he could have chosen Italy as his international team.

As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the winger revealed that he had received an offer from Italy before he made his international debut with the Selecao:

“I was very close to accepting the call from the Italian national team. I was supposed to go to the Euro they won in 2020, it was practically done. Luckily, the passport didn’t arrive… People from the Italian national team were calling me. Jorginho (Arsenal) was calling me all the time.”

Raphinha playing for Brazil. [Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images]

Success with Brazil

However, Raphinha went on to reveal he still had a faint hope of playing for the Canarinha side:

“At the same time, deep down, I still had one percent of hope to wear the Brazil shirt. And luckily, my passport didn’t arrive in time.”

Ultimately, the passport not arriving on time proved to be a blessing in disguise for the Barcelona winger as he is now one of the most important players in the Brazilian national team.

Raphinha made his international debut for the Selecao back in the 2020-21 season and, since then, has accumulated 11 goals and 8 assists.